Hope Looks Up
Psalm 121:1-8 A song of ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills-- where does my help come from? 2 My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot slip-- he who watches over you will not slumber; 4 indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The LORD watches over you-- the LORD is your shade at your right hand; 6 the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The LORD will keep you from all harm-- he will watch over your life; 8 the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.
Intro: It is difficult to know the exact background and intent of this Psalm. Some say that this and other songs of ascent in Psalm 120-134, may have been recited by worshipers when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. If indeed they were traveling that road, they could have encountered some treacherous areas. Beyond the sheer difficulty of climbing upward, they could have been facing the dangers of robbers and even wild animals. This could have been the same path the man took in the parable of the Good Samaritan as he traveled down from Jerusalem to Jericho. Perhaps Jesus even had this Psalm in mind when He told the parable of the Good Samaritan. Regardless, we know that help was needed for the Jews who wrote and recited Psalm 121.
-Some Bible scholars identify 2-3 speakers in this psalm. Speaker one talks in vv. 1-2, and speaker two responds to him with a prayer or blessing in v.3. Then speaker 3 gives words of assurance in vv. 4-8. What strikes me is that there is relationship and encouragement going on – as it should be among us. We do need to remind ourselves of God’s faithfulness and love toward us, but it really helps when friends come along-side us and offer words of encouragement and faith.
-So what can we glean from these words that were written a few thousand years ago? As some of the Jews were making their journey up the steep path to Jerusalem, perhaps one of them paused under the scorching sun and tilted his head back to look at what appeared to be a nearly vertical hillside towering above him. With head back he said, “I see these hills are rugged, steep and dangerous. Who’s going to help us get past them?” I’m glad he didn’t stop there, as so many people do. While gazing upward he went on, “My help comes from the LORD, the One who created all of this and is higher than the highest mountain.”
-Then his friend who was standing beside him put a hand on his shoulder and spoke this blessing over him: “May the Lord not allow your foot to slip! May your protector not sleep!”
-And yet another friend jumped in: “Look! Israel’s protector does not sleep or slumber! The Lord is your protector; the Lord is the shade at your right hand. The sun will not harm you by day or the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all harm; he will protect your life. The Lord will protect you in all you do, now and forevermore.”
-Here is the main thought I’d like to talk about today:
Prop: When your mountain seems too big to climb, look up and remember who gives you the hope you need.
I. Hope believes there is a God who helps us
-It is not uncommon for people to ask this question, “Where does my help come from?” It may be more or less rhetorical in poetry, but it is a real question in life. “Where can I get some help? Who can possibly help me out of this impossible situation?”
-I have a theory that many people know where to turn when they need a miracle. However, too many of them wait until they need a miracle until they turn to Him. What is the cry that comes out of most people’s mouths when they lose control of their car? God! Jesus! Help! How many 911 prayers have been prayed by people who had very little association with God beforehand? And here is the grace of God – many of those prayers have been answered! In His mercy God responds to those who cry out to Him. This is not based on their worthiness. It is based on His love and grace.
-Now if you look at v.2, your Bible probably has LORD in all capital letters. Whenever you see LORD in caps in the OT, it means that God’s covenant name is used – the same covenant name He revealed to Moses. Since the Hebrew language originally had no written vowels the closest idea we have of the sacred name of God is the equivalent of YHWH, usually pronounced Yahweh. It appears to be a derivative of the state of being verb, am, with a first person singular subject. When Moses asked God who he should say had sent him, God said, “Tell Pharaoh I AM has sent you.”
-My help comes from I AM. Who is going to help us? I AM, says the LORD. Who is bigger than the mountain? I AM, says the LORD!
-So our help does not come from some undefined higher power. Our help does not come by looking deep inside ourselves and embarking on a journey of self-discovery or self-actualization. Our help comes from the One who has always been fully present in this world He created: Yahweh, the I AM. Let’s look at the fact that God, the self-existent One, gave us our very existence, and made everything that is.
II. Hope believes that God is our Maker
-It was not a leap at all for the Jews of this era to view God as Creator of all things. After all, Jewish or Hebrew history was arguably one of the most reliable accounts of human history ever recorded. The huge volume of OT manuscripts that are in agreement with one another indicate that the story of God has been passed down to us accurately.
-In Psalm 100, David writes, “It is God who made us; we didn’t make ourselves. We are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.” Scripture is filled with references to God as the maker of heaven and earth and all that is in the earth. Psalm 146:6 says that God is the “Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them.”
-I think the main idea here is that God can handle your mountain! He who made the mountains can help you over yours. Jesus went even further. Matthew 17:20 I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ’Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
-Knowing that we have a loving Creator who is all-powerful, all-knowing, and not limited by time or space should inspire hope and confidence in us! If God was able to make all that you see and feel and experience and more, surely He can take care of it!
III. Hope believes that God is aware of us
-God is not asleep! Apparently, ancient writings from Mesopotamia referred to gods who did not respond to prayers for help as sleeping gods. In fact, Elijah taunted the prophets of Baal saying that Baal must be sleeping or away on a journey because he did not answer their prayer for fire.
-There are times when we might think that God is sleeping or busy in another galaxy somewhere. However, instead of the God who does not see or does not hear or cannot reach, the Bible describes Him as El-Roi, the God who sees, El-Shammah, the God who is there, and many other names that show that He is close and is very aware of us.
In Matthew 6:8, Jesus said, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
-Along those same lines, not only is God fully aware of us, but He is actively guarding us and giving us His protection.
IV. Hope believes that God will watch over us
-To watch over carries the idea of protection. A watcher is one who stands guard. God is the One who guards or protects us. For many of you it is not a problem to apply God’s care of Israel to us, some 3,000 years later. However, the promise of protection was not limited to Israel, but was extended to all who trust in Him. Hebrews 13:5-6 “…God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ 6 So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?’”
-God is watching over those who love and honor Him. Psalm 34:15-16 15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry; 16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
V. Hope believes that God’s love for us lasts forever
-8 the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.
-God loves us and is watching over us every moment of this lifetime, but it doesn’t stop there. His love and care for us will last for all eternity!
Conclusion: As we close, I hope you have been encouraged today by God’s word to you. He wants you to have hope, but the only way you can have hope is to look to Him and learn to trust in Him. I’d like to play a song that reminds us to do just that.
[Play clip- I Will Lift My Eyes- Bebo Norman, Youtube]
